Local Engagement Ideas

Barbara and Barry’s Sweet Sour & Saucy

Local Engagement Ideas Local engagement is a great way to promote your show and get your community more involved with the event by providing fun activities related to the show. •

Theme the venue The venue plays an important role in setting the mood for your event. You may wish to consider setting up the venue in a jazz/ cabaret style with round tables. You could offer table service of 50’s style platters and drinks before, after and at the interval of the show to add to the theme. You could create a package deal for the platter and tickets to the show.

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Old-time dance before/after the show Organise for a dance teacher to run some dance or tap lessons before the show. This could also be offered as a package deal with the show.

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Themed window display Approach your local music store to create a collection of the old classics and themed display to promote the show. In return, they could have CDs or vinyl available for sale at the show. If you don’t have a music store in town, you could work with the CRC, Library or other local business to create a themed display.

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Vintage hair-dos workshop Approach your local hairdresser or barber to run a workshop on vintage hair-dos. This could be offered as a package deal with a ticket to the show.

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Partner with local restaurant Work with a local restaurant to offer a dinner and show package for two.

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Partner with local historical society Celebrate the local history of your community. The historical society could have a display at the show, or you could run a competition on the community’s knowledge of the local history Partner with the local radio station Ask the station to run a segment playing all the classic jazz and blues. Organise for them to interview Barbara and Barry as part of the segment and to promote the show.

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Finest Frocks competition Encourage people to dress up for the show in their finest frock, or the old vintage dress or suit at the back of their (or their parents) cupboard. Run a competition for the finest frock and suavest suit.

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Partner with local second hand/vintage store Partner with your local second hand/vintage store to run the finest frock competition. Ask them to create a rack with their vintage attire and promote this through the competition. The prize for the competition could be a voucher to the store.

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Include a local supporting act What hidden talent lies in your community? Audiences love to support their own and see a familiar face on stage.

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Celebrate local stories Run a social media competition, or ask the community to bring in a story about how they met a loved one, or recount a funny time together. You could also ask people to share photos or stories of their parents or grandparents in love, or try find the couple in town that have been together the longest. The stories and photos would make a great visual display at the show, and a great way to get the community engaged on social media. Get them to tag your event in their post for the chance to win a free ticket to the show.

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Love advice Ask people on social media or at the show to provide their own love advice tips. These could also be pinned up at the show.

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BYO Vinyl Set up a record player and ask people to bring in their vinyl to play before and after the show